Nobody is Safe
by zRewinDzz
Summary: Kakeru Naruse has been saved. He's been taught the importance of life and has a reason to live, Naho Takamiya. However, after Naho discovers a dark secret about her parents' relationship when returning home from a date, it may be Kakeru's turn to save his savior. -Story touches on many sensitive topics. Be aware when reading-
1. Chapter 1 - Naho

**[Warnings (Spoilers): Contains heavy involvement of attempted suicide, depression and anxiety, as well as references to domestic violence and abusive relationships. Reader discretion is advised.**

 **Notice: This was in no way written to lighten the horrors that are these mental illnesses, but rather to bring to light that anyone could be suffering, no matter how good their life may seem, or how happy they appear to others.**

 **I'm going to have a full statement at the end of the chapter fully explaining myself. So if you suffer from any of these illnesses or are interested in knowing my personal reasons for writing about these topics, please read the writers comments at the end of the chapter which will explain where to get help and also my experiences with these topics.]**

Prologue - Naho's Perspective

Naho stared silently into the kitchen. Frozen by what she was seeing. 'Why...' was all she could think. She sneaked to her bedroom. Locked her door and simply lay face down on her bed and cried.

'That wasn't real' she kept telling herself, 'Dad loves Mum so much... he wouldn't... no way... not _**that**_...'

 ***BUZZ BUZZ***  
She looked over at her phone.

 ***BUZZ BUZZ***

Kakeru was calling her.

 ***BUZZ BUZZ***

She went to reach for her phone, but she didn't make it. By the time her hand was anywhere near it, her consciousness had already faded.

Chapter 1 - Naho's Perspective

Naho stumbled into school. Her eyes didn't leave the floor. Suddenly, her mind flooded. She lost sight of where she was... She collapsed onto the floor crying. She held herself, terrified. She eventually found a wall and leaned against it.

'Where am I... Help me... Save me...' her head became clouded... her consciousness began to fade again. Just like the previous night.

Her eyes began to close... she began to fall to the side...

"Naho!" Her tear filled eyes shot open. That was Kakeru's voice. 'Did he hear me?'

"Naho! What's wrong? What happened?!" Naho could hear the fear in Kakeru's voice. 'I really don't want to worry him more than I already have now. He has his own problems.' she thought to herself.

Naho forced a smile. "I'm fine. I just tripped and it hurt a little. That's all"

 **' _I cant tell him. I can't tell him about this. He has his own problems it'll be too much!_ '**

"Naho..." Kakeru suddenly pulled her into a hug, held her tightly and didn't let go... at least not for a while.

Eventually he continued "Let's go to the nurse's office okay?"

They walked to the nurses office, talking about their movie date the day before. However in the back of her mind, the vision she saw upon walking into her home remained.

"By the way. I text and called you last night but you didn't respond. Was everything okay? Did something happen?" Kakeru's question shook Naho.

It took her a while to answer. But eventually, in a very weak voice she responded. "N-No... I just... I fell asleep." Kakeru stopped her immediately and looked straight into her eyes, clearly noticing how she changed when the previous night was mentioned.

"Naho!" Kakeru shouted sternly, "Something happened last night, I can tell from how you're acting right now."

Tears began to fill her eyes again...

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry Kakeru." she cried.

"Why are you sorry? I'm the one who made you cry just now." he responded... she could tell that he felt it was his fault.

"I lied to you Kakeru. I lied to you. The only reason I'm crying right now is because I tried to hide it from you... but you noticed..." she kept wiping her eyes, but it only seemed to make her cry more. "Last night... when I got home... I looked into the kitchen and saw my dad... he... he... to my mum... I went upstairs, and I lay on my bed and I saw you calling... but when I went to reach for my phone... everything went black."

She didn't know it, but once again, Suwa, Azusa, Hagita and Takako were all around the corner, listening as usual. It had become a pattern for them to do this, however it was usually to see her acting close to Kakeru... this was different.

Kakeru grabbed Naho, held her tightly and although he didn't make a sound, Naho could feel her shoulder getting wet, and she knew that while he didn't want to show her... Kakeru was crying too.

"Don't hide this stuff from me okay! I want to help!" Kakeru seemingly begged Naho, "This morning you didn't trip did you? You broke down, and became overcome with thoughts, didn't you!"

Naho couldn't lie anymore. She responded, not with an answer to the question, but with an apology, "I'm sorry Kakeru..."

"Don't apologise. You don't need to. However I want you to promise me something. I want you to promise me that from now on you'll also tell me everything... even if its this bad... please" Kakeru finally broke the embrace, tears in his eyes and his voice wavering...

"Yes... I will from now on." despite saying this, Naho really did wonder if this was a promise she could keep. It hurt her for a moment until Kakeru said 3 words which somehow, hearing it in his voice, calmed her, and made her happy for a moment.

"I love you." The two fell silent for a moment before Naho broke down again. After about half an hour the two walked back to class. Feeling a lot closer than they did upon entering the school building.

 **[Hey guys its me again. Now I know this is the first chapter, but please, tell me what you think! I'm thinking of going down the avenue of that promise Naho made being really tested, as well as showing the situations from both Naho and Kakeru's perspective. One downside to my plan is that the rest of the group will not be involved, at least in the earlier chapters.**

 **I also want to make it clear early on that I am not shying away from serious topics, hence my warning at the beginning. The only thing I'm avoiding mentioning is the situation between Naho's parents. I feel like if I explicitly say what is happening it may get a bit too serious even for a story about mental illness.**

 **My aim with this story is not to deface the severity of these illnesses but rather bring awareness, and show that hiding it is a lot easier than people think. I have suffered from (and am still suffering from) pretty severe depression and anxiety myself and really do hope this will bring more light to the hell that people who suffer from this stuff go through.**

 **Thank you for reading everyone! I hope you found it interesting and I'm looking forward to writing more in the future!]**


	2. Chapter 2 - Importance

_**[I'm so sorry for taking so long to write this chapter! I got caught up in some real life stuff but I'm back! However the delay did allow me to read the first reviews I've recieved on this site! They were so positive and nice! Thank you for the support, it really made me want to write this faster! If you review this chapter I'll attempt to reply! (Of course you must be signed in for me to be able to!)**_

 _ **Also if a chapter is a ".5" it is just a repeat of a segment from a different perspective. I am doing this since a big part of me writing this fic is to show the distortion of reality people in Naho's situation experience.]**_

 **Chapter 1.5 - Kakeru's Perspective**

Kakeru walked through the school gates to see a huge crowd in the locker room. He sighed. 'Another fight? Jeez. Whatever, where's Na-' His thoughts stopped as a gap in the crowd revealed what the crowd was surrounding. Kakeru dropped his bag and broke into a sprint.

"Naho!" he screamed as he aproached his girlfriend. "Naho! What's wrong? What Happened?!" He didn't know what to do, how to help, what to say. His mind was racing.

"I'm fine. I just tripped and it hurt a little. That's all." Kakeru felt his heart drop as Naho forced the most pain-filled smile he'd ever seen. 'Bullshit. Bull. SHIT! You were smiling and laughing so genuinely just 12 hours ago when I dropped you off at home!'

He painfully stopped himself from reacting, although he didnt know how long he'd be able to hold it in for. "Let's go to the nurse's office, okay?" Naho nodded as he picked up the girl on his back and carried her away from the crowd.

As they walked away Kakeru heard Naho whisper something. "I'm sorry." She said, before swiftly switching the subject.

 **Chapter 2 - Naho's Perspective**

Naho spent the entire 3 hour math class thinking about about the events of the previous night. How could she not, it was such a horrible thing to see. 'I know how it'll be. I'll go home and everything will seem normal. Mom will smile at me like usual, ask how my day was, and dad will come downstairs and smile caringly at me, asking what I want for dinner. It'll all be so believable, and yet it'll be such crap! I know about it... but they don't know that... and it'll only get worse if I step in...'

By the time she returned to consciousness, it was the end of class. She stumbled out of class, only to be pulled back by her collar. It was Azusa. "Yo! Come with me after school. Lets go get some cake at the new shop thats opened up outside the station."

She really didn't want to ruin Azusa's day, so she prepared to decline. "Actually I-" she was interupted by her friend dragging her away from the classroom towards the lockers.

"You don't have a choice! We're going!" Naho looked at her face, only for her to wink at her with an out of character "heheh" directed at her.

While they were at the shop, Azusa confessed about hearing what happened, and told her that she was there to help whenever she could. However the topic didn't linger. Azusa quickly switched the mood, and somehow made Naho forget all about her problems.

Naho began to cry when she realised this. 'Why do I deserve friends like this? WHY?! Azusa stop... you're too nice... I don't deserve this.' As if she could read Naho's mind, the mood quickly switched again. "Let's go." she held Naho's hands over the table. "No matter how much you think you don't deserve this treatment, and friendship, we're going to be here. Everyone. After all, Kakeru owes his life to you. Not us, you. You've done so many amazing things, and have helped people so much. It's about time you let those same people help you through a tough time."

They went and sat on a bench. Naho cried into Azusa's arms for what seemed like years. When the two seperated, she held Naho tight again, and said it once more. "Everyone is here for you Naho. Just rely on us, and we will help. We all love you, and hate seeing you hurting."

Naho waved goodbye and closed the door behind her. She felt endless amounts better, and truly realised she had friends that truly cared about her. However her happiness was swiftly halted, as once again as she came through the door, the distorted image through the kitchen door, combined with the shouting she could hear echoing around the walls of her house told her one thing. It was happening again.

She stood frozen again, just like the previous night. Then suddenly, an alarm went off within her head. It repeated one word over and over again, a word that would cause incredible amounts of guilt, but also be the only thing that would guarantee her safety.

 _ **"RUN! RUN! RUN! RUN! RUN! RUN! RUN! RUN! RUN! RUN! RUN! RUN! RUN! RUN! RUN!"**_

The repetition tortured Naho. 'What do you mean, Run? Why wont you shut up! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!' She was scared, confused and, once again, alone. In an attempt to shut up the voices Naho fell to the floor and screamed. "SHUT U~P!" she cried.

Suddenly voices rose from the kitchen, and she realised what she'd done, and in a blind panic, she listened to the voices. She lept up, span around, and, with an incredible amount of guilt, ran away from home. Not knowing where to, or how long for. Right now all she wanted was to be away from that dysfunctional home.

Naho was alone, without anybody by her side, and now she had no home to go to either. She sat on the same bench she'd embraced Azusa on earlier in the evening and cried, holding herself. Nobody was going to come to help.

 _ **[WOO! A bit of a step in this chapter huh? Hopefully you like where this story is going! Also I hope you're enjoying it as much as I enjoy writing it!**_

 _ **It's been a while since I read the manga, so my perception of the way characters act may be a bit off, but I hope you can put that to one side and still enjoy the chapters!**_

 _ **As always if you have any feedback please do let me know by leaving a review below! I'll be responding to any as soon as I can! Anyways, thanks for reading and hopefully you stick around for the next chapter!]**_


	3. Chapter 3 - Broken

"Everything's going to be alright Naho. I promise!" Naho smiled back at her mother, as she stroked her face and hugged her.

 _ **SQUAWK**_

Naho woke up, startled by the bird. She looked around, realising where she was. The park. 'Yesterday I ran away from home... I'm alone now... I guess I need to go to school...' She thought to herself as she stretched, got up, and stumbled towards school, fighting herself to not cry.

 **Chapter 3 - Naho's perspective**

She walked through the gates and put her shoes in the locker, smiling like usual at her friends, saying good morning to everyone, hiding the agony her heart was currently experiencing. 'Please don't find me now, Kakeru. Please.'Right on cue, Naho spotted her boyfriend through the crowd and swiftly avoided him and went straight to class.

In class she was exhausted, not sleeping at all the previous night. Unable to focus she ended up falling asleep in class, only to be woken by her teacher. "Takamiya-san!" he shouted "Can we please not mistake the desks for our pillows on our beds?" Naho could feel herself starting to cry. He didn't understand anything. He didn't know what the last night was like for her.

The class laughed, but suddenly Naho went silent. "Beds," she said to herself "Yeah, I wish." The class stopped and Naho rose, only to leave the classroom without saying another word. After closing the door she ran. Ran out of the front entrance of school, ran back to the park where she'd spent the night. She sat on the swing for what seemed like days, only to hear the voice she both most and least wanted to hear at that time.

"Naho!" Kakeru called out. "I heard you ran out of school. What happened?!" She tried to respond but her voice wouldn't come out. Her breathing got heavier, and more irregular. She began to hyperventilate and panic. Her throat became tight and she suddenly couldn't breath at all. She began trying to grasp at air, as her head began to spin out of panic. Suddenly she felt a forceful embrace. It confused her at first until she heard a faint sobbing sound. As she came back to reality she heard Kakeru crying. Something crept out of his mouth.

"Tell me... please..." His voice breaking. "I don't know what happened, but you're not you today. Please trust me Naho, because it's so painful to not be able to help." He didn't let go of Naho.

Naho didn't know what to do, and this turned out to be what broke her mask. She broke down. Right before the one she wanted to be the strongest in front of. It didn't matter anymore. She just wanted someone to care... She clinged onto Kakeru, and finally responded. Not with a story, but with a simple "Mhm". As she prepared to finally tell Kakeru what really happened.

 _ **[I know this is a short one, however I promise I'll get a longer one out next time! Once again I hope you guys like where this is going, and if you have any feedback or suggestions for the story please do tell me!**_

 _ **Thanks for reading! Please let me know what you thought and I hope you stick around for the next chapter, because it's gonna be good. Well, at least I think so.]**_


	4. Chapter 4 - Family

**_[Just a quick note: This chapter and chapter 5 were written together, so they may follow on slightly better than the other chapters have so far! I hope you enjoy this new part and new turn in the story!]_**

Naho's eyes shot open. Expecting to see the sky, instead she saw an unfamiliar ceiling. Initially this caused panic. 'Where am I?!' raced through her head at lightning pace.

But suddenly a voice echoed from the kitchen. A voice she knew endlessly well. _"Yeah... so that's why she stayed over. I'm sorry for not saying anything."_ Suddenly she felt calm. Her head became clear, knowing that Kakeru was near. She rose out of bed and carefully moved towards the voice. As she peered around the corner, she saw Kakeru standing with a familliar old woman.

"Ah! Naho-chan. Good morning!" Kakeru's grandma who they had visited often, and who played a vital part in saving Kakeru's life.

"Good morning, Naruse-san." She'd taken up the role of Kakeru's carer after the passing of his mother, and he's come to care about her more than anyone else, simply out of fear of losing another parent figure.

"Please, call me 'Grandma'. Did you sleep well?" she knew exactly what the situation was simply from hearing that one line from Kakeru.

"Yeah... great... ehh..." She struggled to get her words out, and it took a while before she figured out a way to state her point. Eventually she gathered her words and was able to confirm her suspicions. "So how did I get here..."

Kakeru jolted and tightened his fist. "Y-.. You... passed out in the park after telling me everything. You must have been exhausted from not getting much sleep... and you had a real bad fever too, which I guess is a cold from sleeping outside... I wasn't just going to let you sleep out again, okay!"

Naho couldn't believe she was seeing this side of Kakeru. He'd always been the type to hide his true feelings, much like herself. "Thank you, Kakeru." All that she could think about was the pain she was being. She wanted to get out, she felt terrible about it. "I'll not be a problem for much longer. I'll leave as soon as-"

"No!" Kakeru stopped Naho, "You're going to be living here with us for as long as you can't safely go home. I'm not gonna let you stay out there any longer. It's just not safe."

"But-"

"No buts, Naho-chan, Kakeru and I are more than happy to have you stay with us. Today's a school day, but I've already called you in sick. You're not going anywhere until that cold clears, so go and get some rest. We can talk about a more permanent sleeping arrangement tonight." Grandma was stern, moreso than She'd ever seen her... Naho couldn't argue, or else more tears would be shed.

Naho lay back onto the futon lay on the lounge floor. Closed her eyes, and felt a kiss connect with her lips. She opened her eyes back open to see Kakeru leaned over smiling. "See you later. I'm off."

Naho's face, flushed even before Kakeru's attack, didn't have a spot on it that wasn't bright red. "R-...Right! Bye!" Kakeru got up and walked away. Naho realised that Kakeru had once again saved her.

Naho leapt up and stumbled after Kakeru. Before he could turn around she embraced him from behind... This time she couldn't hold back the tears. "Thank you... Kakeru... Thank you so much." she said through the tears.

Kakeru spun her round, looked her in the eyes and said with a sincere smile, "No, Naho. Thank **_you_**. I owe my life to you. I love you so much." He once again locked lips with her, this time Naho was able to return the gesture.

For the first time since running out of her house for the first time, Naho had a new thought enter her head, a one that wasn't screaming for help, nor was it telling the people around her they don't understand. For the first time, it was none of that.

 _'I will get through this. **We** will get through this'_


	5. Chapter 5 - Together

"I'm home!" Kakeru called out as he barged through the door. Within the same breath however something completely different left his mouth. "Naho! How're you feeling?!"

"Better, grandma made me some porridge and I had some medicine which helped. My fever has went down too." Kakeru seemed relieved. His shoulders loosened and his smile returned, wiping away the serious, worried look he entered the house with.

"So Kakeru, now that you're home, shall we talk about where Naho-chan is going to sleep? We can't just let her permanently sleep in the lounge..."

"How about just putting the futon on my floor? Since I'm the one who brought her here, I should take responsibility of that and do my bit by letting her sleep in my room."

"Kakeru... you know full well..." Grandma stopped for a second, and she clearly didn't like the idea, but surprisingly, the next words that left her mouth were, "Alright, I guess if Naho-chan is okay with it you can share a room, so long as you behave. I suppose it's true we don't really have anywhere else to put a futon permanently, either."

"Eh?!" Naho was flustered for a second, sharing a room with a boy in any scenario was something she'd never done, let alone with Kakeru... But she was sure that it wouldn't be bad, and having Kakeru by her side would more than likely help her sleep easier and sounder. "I'm okay with that, I'll start moving my stuff!" She said shyly then immediately ran off before anyone could notice her embarrassment.

"It's time for bed Naho, we have school tomorrow, remember?" Kakeru called to her, taking Naho's attention from the evening drama that was playing on TV.

"Right. Coming!" Naho rose and bid goodnight to grandma before following Kakeru to his room. Upon reaching his room they kissed each other goodnight, before getting into their beds and turning the lights out.

About 10 minutes passed, and Naho couldn't relax. All that the silence was doing was make her think about the situation at home, her parents, and how she felt when she witnessed **_that_**. She eventually realised if she didn't calm down she'd be unable to stay awake in school the next day. She had to do something.

"Kakeru? Are you awake?"

"Yeah, I am. What's up?"

"It's just... I can't calm down. I'm too worried about my parents. What's happening there, was running away the right decision? I'm just so scared that-"

"Wanna sleep in the bed with me?" Kakeru sternly said out of nowhere. "Only if you want to... I just thought that maybe that would help calm you down if I was right there... it's fine if you don't-"

Despite the embarrassment, Naho knew that was exactly what she wanted... the sight of Kakeru was the only thing that gave her hope recently, and saying that she didn't want this to happen would be a lie...

It was Naho's turn to interrupt him. "Yes... please..." Naho stood up and slid under the duvet being lifted by Kakeru. Naho immediately wrapped her arms around him and buried her head in his chest. "I'm scared Kakeru... I don't know what to do. It's terrifying..."

Kakeru pulled her closer, with his arm around her head and simply said the sentence that once again was a string of words which matched the exact words she wanted to hear from him.

"I'm right here, Naho. You don't have to be scared anymore."

The darkness of the night may have been terrifying, but Naho was slowly realising the boy in her arms was the light to help her through it, and knowing that allowed her to fall asleep.

Her dream wasn't a nightmare that night. It seemingly took her entire future. Some ups, some downs, but one constant. Kakeru never left her side. She finally understood, and what she understood gave her the hope that had vanished just a week earlier.

 ** _'I get it Kakeru. I finally get it. I love you too much to say because I finally understand.'_**

"Please don't ever leave me, Kakeru."

"I won't. I'll always be right here beside you. No matter what."

"The words 'I love you' just don't cut it anymore... just please don't ever go."

Kakeru could hear her crying from the breaks in her voice, but rather than responding he simply just held her tighter, so that she knew he'd never leave her side.

 _ **[I hope you like it so far, this new arc with Naho settling in to living with Kakeru and his family really made me think of Tomoya and Nagisa from Clannad, which made me even more determined to write it well, which I hope I did.**_

 _ **I also hope you don't mind that this story is starting to take a detour onto a little bit of a romance arc, but I hope you can bare with it and maybe enjoy it (if you like or dislike it please let me know so I can fix it in future chapters).**_

 _ **That brings me nicely onto my final point, if you guys want to see anything in these stories you can let my know in a review and I'll more than likely read them fast and try and implement your suggestion in some way!**_

 _ **Thanks for reading!]**_


	6. Chapter 6 - Betrayal

The alarm clock woke both Naho and Kakeru up suddenly, shocking them both. As they came to, they realised the situation they were in, and remembered the conversation the previous night. Naho leapt out of bed, her face completely flushed with embarrasment.

"G-Good..." She was so embarrassed she couldn't get her words out, and turned to run out of the room, however Kakeru grabbed her hand before she could.

"Good morning, Naho." He said with a smile. A smile which cleared all embarrassment, and brought her back to earth.

"Mhm. Good morning." They proceeded to get ready to leave for school seperately, each changing while the other was using the bathroom.

"I'm off." Kakeru called, and as they walked away Naho politely followed suit.

"Thanks for having me." she said as they began to walk away.

"Naho-chan." Grandma stopped her, "When you're leaving for the day you don't say that, you say 'I'm off'."

Naho felt a smile sweep across her face, and as she turned back she excitedly shouted "I'm off!"

Kakeru and Naho grinned at eachother and Grandma watched from the doorway as they walked away, holding onto eachother's hands tightly as they began their commute to school.

As the days progressed, Naho's problems began to vanish, and by the time she realised it, it had been 2 weeks since she'd began living with Kakeru. However it was on that day that those she trusted used that trust to hurt her greatly.

She and Kakeru had left the house to school as normal, classes continued as normal, and everything was going well. At the end of the day, however, Naho was called to the principal's office. Kakeru said he would wait at the lockers for her, and everything seemed fine.

However, upon reaching the principal's office she immediately knew something was off. Sat around a desk was the school nurse, the principal and a third person. A tall, thin man dressed in a suit wearing a "Visitor" badge.

"Ah, Takamiya-san! Please take a seat. This here is Hideko Akane-san. He's a certified counsellor who has been working with our school." Immedately Naho panicked. She was filled with fear and was struggling to breathe. "We've called you here because we recieved a call from Naruse-san's Grandmother stating that you had been experiencing problems at home in regards to your family."

Hideko stood up and bowed towards Naho, but Naho didn't care. As soon as the principal had finished she spun and ran out of the room. She ran towards the exit. As she passed the lockers Kakeru was waiting and tried to stop her.

"Naho! Wait" he screamed. But it was no good, Naho kept running. Kakeru chased her and upon catching up with her, he found her sat on the park bench again, crying. Kakeru took a deep breath and walked towards her.

"Why... Why was he there?" She said through her tears. "I didn't want anything else to do with that situation. I was fine with running away from it. It did nothing but hurt me!"

Kakeru clutched his shirt. A tear fell down his face, and as he was about to speak she turned and screamed.

 _ **"Whenever I think about this shit it makes me wonder why I'm still on this fucking planet."**_

Kakeru's heart stopped with the sound of those words.

 _ **[Hello! First of all thank you all for the kind words, and I'm glad you're enjoying the story. I owe you all an apology for taking so long to upload this chapter. As you may be able to tell I'll be starting to head into a more open style, as suggested by a few of you. I know I'd tried to keep the language clean up until now, but I felt like having Naho say it so suddenly would give an insight of how uncontrollable a situation can make a state of mind like this.**_

 _ **I'll be writing some more of this over the coming days so there'll be a lot more updates hopefully! We are starting to head towards the end of what I have planned, however I may change this to a normal story between Kakeru if you guys would want that (Let me Know)]**_


End file.
